How Legumes Select Their Sweet Talking Symbionts

Abstract
Legumes form a symbiotic relationship with rhizobial bacteria, which live in root nodules and fix nitrogen to form ammonia. A key event in the initiation of this symbiotic relationship is the release of Nod factor signals by bacteria. In his Perspective, Cullimore and Dénarié discuss new work published here ( Limpens et al.) and elsewhere that identifies the plant receptors recognizing Nod factors.